As part of a painting unit, students created a non-objective abstract painting on gessoed hardboard canvases. The student chose a color scheme, such as monochromatic, analogous, or complementary. Students must have prior knowledge in some basic color theory in order to complete this project. This lesson follows two lessons on basic color theory including identifying organizing color and understanding how to mix values.

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The project is inspired by several artists that were introduced as part of the lesson. These artists include Carmen Herrera, Wassily Kandinksky, Kazimir Malevich, and other constructivist painters. So, what is non-objective style art? Non-objective art defines a type of abstract art that is usually, but not always, geometric and aims to convey a sense of simplicity and purity. This painting project is a great first painting for middle or high school students, because it asks students not to worry about creating something that looks realistic or perfect. Here, they can create abstract compositions and demonstrate their understanding of how to mix paint and create values.

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